What is the TTIP?
The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) in the words of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), “is an ambitious, comprehensive, and high-standard trade and investment agreement being negotiated between the United States and the European Union (EU)” launched in 2013. (Source: USTR TTIP website) In President Obama’s State of the Union Address on 12 February 2013, Obama announched the launch of the TTIP:
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Attached below is a letter KEI sent to Emily Bleimund, Senior Policy Advisor for International Trade for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and several other U.S. trade officials. The letter addresses three issues in the TPP text:
- There is a need for exceptions to exclusive rights in pharmaceutical and biologic drug test data.
- WTO standards for compulsory licenses should not be modified as part of a secret negotiation, or constrained by a 3-step test.
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The World Intellectual Property Organization’s (WIPO) Twenty-Second session of the Standing Committee on the Law of Patents (SCP) will be convened from 27 July 2015 to 31 July 2015 in Geneva, Switzerland. For consideration of the Committee, the Group of Latin American and Caribbean Countries (GRULAC) have submitted a proposal entitled, Revision of 1979 WIPO Model Law for Developing Countries on Inventions (SCP/22/5). Continue Reading →
Today on the last day of the SCCR 30, under Agenda Item 9 “Other Matters” Congo-Brazzaville asked for the floor to propose that the WIPO Copyright and Related Right Committee start working on the Resale Right, a fundamental right for authors of graphic and plastic arts. This economical rights consists of a small percentage of the resale price that art market professionals pay to artists at each resale of their works be it in auction or in a gallery.
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During WIPO’s discussions of copyright limitations and exceptions for libraries and archives at the 30th session of the Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR30, the Chair (Martin Moscoso) presented a non-paper, intended to guide discussions. Continue Reading →
July 1, 2015 day 3
This morning, the SCCR continued with the discussion regarding two important definitions–definition of beneficiaries: who are they? How do you define a broadcaster? And also of course what is the definition of the act of broadcasting.
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Anne Leer is the WIPO Deputy Director General for Culture and Creative Industries Sector, where she leads WIPO’s activities in the field of copyright and related rights. Not a familiar figure at WIPO, she joined the organisation in December 2014, coming from the commercial side of British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). In addition to the BBC, she had previously worked for Paramount, Oxford University Press, and Financial Times/Pearson and Prentice Hall. Continue Reading →
Day 1 of SCCR 30 Information Session
Find a few Juicy bits from the long “Information Session on Broadcasting” that started this morning and was continued way passed the planned time of 4pm. It was also the least balanced panel I have ever seen at a WIPO SCCR. A handful of broadcasters, one media analyst, one journalist at the BBC, the WIPO Secretariat represented by Ann Leer (who worked for Paramount, Oxford University Press, BBC, and Financial Times/Pearson and the BBC).
Basically there was no one remotely critical of the proposed treaty nor any public interest representative.
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SCCR 30 Day 1 June 29, 2015
The SCCR 30 started with the same industry representatives we usually meet here: the MPA, FIJ, IAF, CISAC, Croplife, IFPI, ABA etc… There are also quite a large group of library and archives representatives (IFLA, eifl, Archives etc). However there are many empty chairs for the public interest or pro development NGOs. Some might arrive later?
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I spent a bit of time to look at the contributions from selected drug and medical device Political Action Committees (PACs) to the 28 House Democrats who voted for fast track on June 18, 2015. Continue Reading →
